The Lord of the Rings and The Hobbit are two widely loved properties that have found they way into a bunch of different mediums. And now, they are on the cusp of finding a new home as the rights for both are now up for sale.
According to Variety, Saul Zaentz Co. is selling the rights, which are said to be valued at around $2 billion based on “recent high valuations for top-tier IP and content producers.” The sale process is unfolding this week with ACF Investment Bank as the company is looking for a buyer around Hollywood.
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Selling the rights around Prime Video’s upcoming series is not a coincidence, either. Amazon is reportedly at the top of the list for potential buyers. And given the company’s near-bottomless pockets and big bet on fantasy properties, it seems quite likely that Amazon could be the new owner of The One Ring.
In addition to the films, the rights also cover merchandising, live events, and theme parks as well as video games. Warner Bros. has developed the last few video games, mainly the Middle-earth: Shadow of Mordor and Middle-earth: Shadow of War titles, both of which were received relatively well. Monolith Productions developed those two games and is now creating a Wonder Woman game. Amazon’s video game initiative has hit many snags, but it did recently release its MMORPG New World, which has fantasy elements.
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Warner Bros. holds some of the film rights as it is creating the animated The Lord of the Rings: The War of the Rohirrim. But the lack of live-action content meant that the live-action film rights went back to Zaentz Co., which convinced the company that it was a good time to sell.
